No Pro Bowl seasons here

David Haugh ranks the Bears' position groups in order of 1st-half performance

November 05, 2003|By David Haugh.

Wide receivers

Nobody's having a Pro Bowl year, but thanks to rookies, overall talent makes this the deepest group on the team.

Special teams

In all three Bears' wins, a special-teams play has supplied a game-changing moment--Paul Edinger's game-winning field goal against the Raiders, Jerry Azumah's kickoff return for a TD against the Lions and Charles Tillman's downing of a punt at the 1 against the Chargers.

Defensive backs

Up until a few games ago, Steve Bartman had gotten in the way of more balls this fall than Bears' cornerbacks had, but Tillman and Azumah have started playing with confidence.

Running backs

Anthony Thomas still on pace for 1,000-yard season, and the Bears' offense will go as long as the "A-Train," keeps chugging.

Offensive line

The makeshift group accounted well for itself once it developed some continuity.

Tight ends

All the Bears have to do is find more ways to utilize them.

Linebackers

The group has been aggressive, but took a while to adjust to the new upfield philosophy that allowed blockers to get on them quicker than before.

Quarterbacks

Bringing Kordell Stewart in was supposed to remove doubt, not create it.

Defensive line

Only recently has the group started to stop the run, and the pass rush remains a rumor.